Strong proprietary slot brands have transformed the market since the license-happy 2000s
To License or Not ?
Strong proprietary slot brands have transformed the market since the license-happy 2000s
By Frank Legato
The Beverly Hillbillies . M * A * S * H . Gilligan ’ s Island . Betty Boop . There was a period between the end of the 1990s and the mid
2000s when core video slots from all the manufacturers were heavy on licensed brands from popular entertainment . At one point , the competition for the next blockbuster licensed game was like an arms race .
That ’ s all changed in the ensuing years . Most of those early brands faded from the public consciousness as their fans aged and entertainment itself evolved . Each of the manufacturers has a handful of licenses that have stood the test of time , and are still yielding high-earning sequels year after year , but the licensed-brand race ended long ago .
What ’ s emerged in its place is a range of iconic proprietary brands from each slot-maker — game franchises that have held up unapologetically to the highest-profile of the licensed game families .
Among the largest slot manufacturers , there are four whose product libraries contain significant numbers of licensed slot brands as well as a thriving collection of internal brands .
For Aristocrat , it ’ s Buffalo versus Game of Thrones or The Walking Dead . For IGT , it ’ s Wheel of Fortune versus Cleopatra or Wolf Run . For Light & Wonder , it ’ s Monopoly and Willy Wonka versus Blazing 7s and Hot Shot . For Everi , it ’ s The Mask and Smokin ’ Hot Stuff versus Mega Meltdown and Cash Machine .
“ I think trends in the market around art packages and brands are like a pendulum ; they swing back and forth between licensed and proprietary ,” comments Jon Hanlin , senior vice president , commercial strategy , Americas and EMEA for Aristocrat Gaming . “ And we definitely , over the last couple years , have been much heavier on proprietary , as those games have evolved and we ’ ve been able to add more of the glitz and glamor that you used to add into those licensed games , and put them into a product like a Buffalo game .
“ I also think that overall , the volatility of math in slot machines has gotten a little higher over the last few years , definitely since the pandemic , but even before that , things like Lightning Link , Dragon Link and Buffalo helped usher that in . Traditionally , those licensed products did not pair with that volatile math . So as the market moved more volatile , the licensed games became less impactful because people associated licenses with that less volatile math .”
“ It has been a journey in the sense that licensed brands have evolved as well as proprietary brands ,” says Domenico Pastia , senior vice president , global product for IGT . “ At IGT , we have been extremely focused on our flagship brands , namely Wheel of Fortune and a few others where we have devoted a lot of investment focus and energy through hardware and content .
“ And on the other end , we have increasingly focused on proprietary brands , where we probably have the deepest library of strong brands in the industry . In the past , we were not leveraging them enough .”
Pastia says IGT has been focusing on the best of those brands , Cleopatra and Wolf Run , with new releases . “ That all happened in the last 18 months , with the idea that the players know them and appreciate the mechanic ,” he says . “ And the trick here is evolving them while respecting the original DNA of the game . I think that is our challenge today , but we are starting from a
22 Global Gaming Business NOVEMBER 2023